table 7 - uploaded by Anna Vignoles
Content may be subject to copyright.
Source publication
In this paper we evaluate the labour market value of basic skills in the UK, focusing on the wage and employment returns to having better literacy and numeracy skills. We draw on literacy and numeracy assessments undertaken by all cohort members of the UK 1970 British Cohort Study. The data used are very rich and allow us to account for potential a...
Similar publications
In this article, I argue that research on social stratification, on intergenerational transmission of inequalities, and on the theory of factor payments and wage determination will be strengthened by studying the role played by early childhood health. I show that the inclusion of such a factor requires researchers to integrate theories in each of t...
Citations
... Слабые навыки чтения и счета имели серьезные последствия с точки зрения перспектив трудоустройства и повышения заработной платы, особенно для женщин. Тем не менее, несмотря на интересные выводы, которые предоставляют подобные исследования рынка рабочей силы в сочетании с функциональной грамотностью [3], [4] существуют исследования, посвященные работодателям и их удовлетворенностью кадрами [5]. В частности, исследование потребностей работодателей в профессиональных навыках, проведенное в Великобритании, отмечает, что около трети работодателей заявили об отсутствии навыков у подчиненных, но только 12% считало, что это связано с навыками чтения и счета. ...
В статье рассматриваются исследования, проведенные на рынке труда, указывающие на то, что функциональная грамотность является важным компонентом и отчасти залогом трудоустройства, но помимо этого с точки зрения работодателей существует множество других важных навыков, которые также можно уложить в определение «функциональной грамотности» в ее более широком понимании. Несмотря на заинтересованность Казахстана в оценке ситуации с функциональной грамотностью детей и взрослых, что подтверждается активным участием страны в международных сопоставительных исследованиях, инструментов оценки функциональной грамотности на уровне высшего образования на сегодняшний момент не существует. Критика качества высшего образования в стране также повышает актуальность данного исследования, поскольку оно предлагает вузам теоретическую рамку оценивания развития функциональной грамотности студентов как механизма отслеживания прогресса студентов в этой области и принятия соответствующих мер. При разработке теоретической рамки инструмента оценки функциональной грамотности выпускников вузов в Казахстане важно понимание теоретических, концептуальных и исторических истоков исследований, посвященных измерению функциональной грамотности. Целью исследования является изучение исторической, методической литературы, а также техни- ческой документации для определения общей концепции теоретической рамки инструмента оценки функциональной грамотности выпускников вузов в Казахстане. В методологии исследования использованы контекстный, концептуальный методы интеллек- туального анализа текста и методы измерения когнитивных навыков. Научной новизной исследования является попытка разработки теоретической рамки инструмента оценки функциональной грамотности выпускников вузов в Казахстане. Практическая значимость определяется тем, что в контексте нового подхода к оценки функциональной грамотности, исследование позволит определить основные тематические направления в области развития функциональной грамотности в высшем образовании. Исходя из результатов, можно сделать выводы о том, что эта статья направлена на использование полученных в ходе данного исследования положений в целях разработки теоретической рамки инструмента оценки функциональной грамотности выпускников вузов в Казахстане. Рекомендациями служат выводы исследователей о том, важными и принципиальными отличиями предлагаемой рамки является включение компонента ИКТ в задачи, связанные с измерением навыков чтения и счета. Ключевые слова: теоретическая рамка, функциональная грамотность, читательская грамотность, выпускники вузов, международные исследования.
Ӛзектілігі. Мақалада еңбек нарығында жүргізілген зерттеулер қарастырылады, бұл функцио- налдық сауаттылықтың маңызды құрамдас бӛлігі және ішінара жұмыспен қамтудың кепілі екенін кӛрсетеді, бірақ сонымен қатар жұмыс берушілердің кӛзқарасы бойынша «функционалдық сауаттылықты» кеңірек түсінуде анықтауға болатын кӛптеген басқа маңызды дағдылар бар. Қазақстанның балалар мен ересектердің функционалдық сауаттылығымен жағдайды бағалауға мүдделілігіне қарамастан, бұл елдің халықаралық салыстырмалы зерттеулерге белсенді қатысуымен расталады, қазіргі уақытта жоғары білім деңгейінде функционалдық сауаттылықты бағалау құралдары жоқ. Елдегі жоғары білім сапасын сынау сонымен қатар осы зерттеудің ӛзектілігін арттырады, ӛйткені ол жоғары оқу орындарына студенттердің осы саладағы үлгерімін бақылау және тиісті шаралар қабылдау тетігі ретінде студенттердің функционалдық сауаттылығының дамуын бағалаудың теориялық шеңберін ұсынады. Қазақстандағы ЖОО түлектерінің функционалдық сауаттылығын бағалау құралының теориялық шеңберін әзірлеу кезінде функционалдық сауаттылықты ӛлшеуге арналған зерттеулердің теориялық, тұжырымдамалық және тарихи бастауларын түсіну маңызды. Зерттеудің мақсаты Қазақстандағы ЖОО түлектерінің функционалдық сауаттылығын бағалау құралының теориялық шеңберінің жалпы тұжырымдамасын айқындау үшін тарихи, әдістемелік әдебиеттерді, сондай-ақ техникалық құжаттаманы зерделеу болып табылады. Зерттеу әдістемесінде мәтінді интеллектуалды талдаудың контекстік, тұжырымдамалық әдістері және когнитивті дағдыларды ӛлшеу әдістері қолданылады. Зерттеудің ғылыми жаңалығы Қазақстандағы ЖОО түлектерінің функционалдық сауаттылығын бағалау құралының теориялық шеңберін әзірлеу әрекеті болып табылады. Практикалық маңыздылығы функционалдық сауаттылықты бағалаудың жаңа тәсілі аясында зерттеу жоғары білім берудегі функционалдық сауаттылықты дамыту саласындағы негізгі тақырыптық бағыттарды анықтауға мүмкіндік беретіндігімен анықталады. Ұсынымдар зерттеушілердің ұсынылған шеңбердің маңызды және түбегейлі айырмашылықтары оқу және санау дағдыларын ӛлшеуге байланысты тапсырмаларға акт компонентін қосу болып табылады деген қорытындылары болып табылады. Тҥйін сҿздер: теориялық шеңбер, функционалдық сауаттылық, оқу сауаттылығы, ЖОО түлектері, халықаралық зерттеулер.
Relevance. The article examines research conducted on the labor market, indicating that functional literacy is an important component and partly a guarantee of employment, but in addition, from the point of view of employers, there are many other important skills that can also be put into the definition of "functional literacy" in its broader sense. Despite Kazakhstan's interest in assessing the situation with functional literacy of children and adults, which is confirmed by the country's active participation in international comparative studies, there are currently no tools for assessing functional literacy at the level of higher education. Criticism of the quality of higher education in the country also increases the relevance of this study, since it offers universities a theoretical framework for assessing the development of students' functional literacy as a mechanism for tracking students' progress in this area and taking appropriate measures. When developing a theoretical framework for assessing the functional literacy of university graduates in Kazakhstan, it is important to understand the theoretical, conceptual and historical origins of research on the measurement of functional literacy. The purpose of the study is to study historical, methodological literature, as well as technical documentation to determine the general concept of the theoretical framework of the tool for assessing the functional literacy of university graduates in Kazakhstan. The research methodology uses contextual, conceptual methods of intellectual text analysis and methods of measuring cognitive skills. The scientific novelty of the study is an attempt to develop a theoretical framework for assessing the functional literacy of university graduates in Kazakhstan. The practical significance is determined by the fact that in the context of a new approach to the assessment of functional literacy, the study will determine the main thematic areas in the development of functional literacy in higher education. Based on the results, it can be concluded that this article is aimed at using the provisions obtained in the course of this study in order to develop a theoretical framework for assessing the functional literacy of university graduates in Kazakhstan. The recommendations are the conclusions of the researchers that the important and fundamental differences of the proposed framework is the inclusion of the ICT component in the tasks related to measuring reading and numeracy skills. Keywords: theoretical framework, functional literacy, reading literacy, university graduates, international studies.
... The idea that occupational activity may have an effect on cognitive processes and performance is not new but there is a lack of empirical evidence to support the claim (Marquié et al., 2010). We lack understanding of how basic skills are created and maintained beyond initial education and how these skills affect labour market performance for individuals and moreover the general economic activity (Cascio et al., 2008), and the role of basic skills in the labour market remains relatively understudied (Vignoles et al., 2011). Our research aim is to explore how the construct of occupational complexity is related to proficiency in numeracy. ...
... Links between both proficiency in numeracy and literacy and national economic growth and welfare have been established (Burns et al., 2016;Hanushek and Zhang, 2006;Vignoles et al., 2011;Willms and Murray, 2007). Proficiency in the basic skills of numeracy and literacy predicts employment (Coulombe and Tremblay, 2009). ...
The basic cognitive skill of numeracy is a recognized form of human capital, associated with economic and social well being for individuals and for nations. In this study, we explore how occupational complexity relates to proficiency in numeracy, among adults in full-time employment. We operationalize occupational complexity by constructing three measures of task complexity: complexity with data, complexity with people and complexity with things. Data from the international OECD survey of adult skills, 2012, is employed to investigate both the distribution of these three dimensions of occupational task complexity and how these relate to numeracy in 13 countries. The analysis indicates that data occupational complexity predicts numeracy scores, when controlling for age, gender and educational level. The findings open for a hypothesis that occupational activities may enhance basic skills in adult populations. If elaborated and supported through further studies this finding has practical implications for workplace organization and contributes to theoretical understandings of the development of basic skills in adults.
... This is an important finding because empirical evidence from our setting shows that literacy and numeracy skills have a high value in the UK labour market even when we control for education(Vignoles et al., 2011). ...
While it is widely established that higher wages attract more productive individuals into teaching, it is unclear if salaries can be used to motivate existing teachers to work harder, or more productively, in any way that affects pupil outcomes. Using teachers' predicted relative wages, calculated using a novel method of estimating teachers' outside option, we provide evidence that teachers do respond to higher wages and this improves pupil outcomes. Consistent with the predictions of the efficiency wage model a 10% increase in teachers' relative wages improves pupil performance in Science by 0.03sd, Math by 0.024sd as well as their enjoyment of learning by 0.05sd. The magnitude of these effects are similar to a 1 student reduction in class size or an additional hour of weekly tuition.
... first we derive a measure of teachers' relative wages that accounts for differences in job security. This is an important contribution as existing evidence shows that job security plays an important role in the decision to become a teacher and a failure to include this underestimates the returns to teaching (Heinz 2015, Priyadharshini andRobinson-Pant 2003 43 This is an important finding because empirical evidence from our setting shows that literacy and numeracy skills have a high value in the UK labour market even when we control for education (Vignoles et al., 2011). ...
This PhD thesis consists of three chapters in the topic of applied labour economics. The first chapter investigates the determinants of higher education (HE) participation using new data on university-related subjective expectations elicited from parents and young people in the Innovation Panel of the UK Household Longitudinal Study. We find that differences in HE aspirations can, partially, be explained by differences in the expected returns to a degree and that individuals adjust their university-related beliefs and subjective expectation in response to a light touch information treatment. The second chapter estimates the determinants of occupational choice after graduation. Specifically we look at the effect that labour market conditions have on a graduate’s decision to enrol onto an initial teacher training programme (TTP). We find that labour market conditions have no effect on the probability that a graduate will go into a TTP, but heterogeneity analysis suggests that periods of high unemployment impact the composition of graduates who enter the teaching profession. Graduating during a period of low labour demand has an effect on diversity (more male graduates and more ethnic minority graduates), subject specific shortages (more physics graduates) and composition of
graduates from different Higher Education institutions. The third chapter analyses whether higher relative wages can motivate teachers to work harder, or more productively, in any way that affects pupil outcomes. Consistent with the predictions of the efficiency wage model, we find that teachers’ relative wages have a positive effect on their pupils’ cognitive outcomes (measured by test scores), with an effect size similar to a one pupil reduction in class sizes or an additional hour of weekly tuition for a 10 percentage change in relative wages. In addition, we find that relative wages have a positive effect on pupils’ enjoyment of learning.
... 19 Most of the empirical evidence on the importance of general IQ or general cognitive skills on economic outcomes comes from data from high-income countries examines. This literature suggests a substantial premium for cognitive skill in the U.S. labor market ( Bowles et al., 2001 ;Howell and Wolff, 1991 ;Murnane et al., 1995 , Denny andDoyle, 2010 ;Heineck and Anger, 2010 ;Vignoles et al., 2011 ;Barrett, 2012 ;Ramos et al., 2013 ). In the context of a low-income country, only LaFave and Thomas (2017) , who use data from Indonesia, examine the effects of various cognitive domains (i.e., Raven's test, fluid intelligence, and memory) on earnings. ...
Numerous studies have considered the important role of cognition in estimating the returns to schooling. How cognitive abilities affect schooling may have important policy implications, especially in developing countries during periods of increasing educational attainment. Using two longitudinal labor surveys that collect direct proxy measures of cognitive skills, we study the importance of specific cognitive domains for the returns to schooling in two samples. We instrument for schooling levels and we find that each additional year of schooling leads to an increase in earnings by approximately 18-20 percent. The estimated effect sizes—based on the two-stage least squares estimates—are above the corresponding ordinary least squares estimates. Furthermore, we estimate and demonstrate the importance of specific cognitive domains in the classical Mincer equation. We find that executive functioning skills (i.e., memory and orientation) are important drivers of earnings in the rural sample, whereas higher-order cognitive skills (i.e., numeracy) are more important for determining earnings in the urban sample. Although numeracy is tested in both samples, it is only a statistically significant predictor of earnings in the urban sample. (JEL I21, F63, F66, N37)
... These findings are consistent with earlier work that uses far richer data to look at the wage premium associated with basic skills [13], [15]. In these studies, the authors draw on several longitudinal data sets collected during childhood, specifically the UK birth cohort data sets, which enable researchers to take into account a person's early cognitive ability (as measured by various cognitive tests taken in primary and early secondary school). ...
... This provides somewhat indicative evidence of the impact of basic skills on wages, over and above any labor market benefits from early ability. Furthermore, this work suggests that an additional standard deviation in literacy skills attracted a wage premium of around 14% and better numeracy skills a premium of around 11%, for a cohort of 34-year-olds in 2004 (using the British Cohort Study of individuals born in 1970) [15]. ...
... The authors thank an anonymous referee and the IZA World of Labor editors for many helpful suggestions on earlier drafts. Previous work of the authors contains a larger number of background references for the material presented here and has been used intensively in all major parts of this article [15]. This article draws on work that was originally funded by the Centre for the Economics of Education (a collaboration between the London School of Economics, the Institute of Education, and the Institute for Fiscal Studies, and funded by the Department for Education in the UK). ...
... 19 Most of the empirical evidence on the importance of general IQ or general cognitive skills on economic outcomes comes from data from high-income countries examines. This literature suggests a substantial premium for cognitive skill in the U.S. labor market ( Bowles et al., 2001 ;Howell and Wolff, 1991 ;Murnane et al., 1995 , Denny andDoyle, 2010 ;Heineck and Anger, 2010 ;Vignoles et al., 2011 ;Barrett, 2012 ;Ramos et al., 2013 ). In the context of a low-income country, only LaFave and Thomas (2017) , who use data from Indonesia, examine the effects of various cognitive domains (i.e., Raven's test, fluid intelligence, and memory) on earnings. ...
... al., 2011). The positive wage effect of ability lies with the possession of mechanic abilities , literacy and numeracy skills (Vignoles et al., 2011), and personality traits like adulthood extraversion and childhood constructiveness (Viinikainen et al., 2010). In fact, the importance of ability outweighs that of education when Patrinos and Sakellariou (2011) showed that a lack of adult functional literacy skills had lowered the earnings contribution of education. ...
The objective of this paper is to examine the impact of workers' ability index on wages and optimal level of schooling in the service sector. Empirical analysis in this study is conducted on 611 households' data in Peninsular Malaysia collected in 2015. In this analysis, workers' ability index is divided into two categories, namely index of ability during schooling and index of ability at workplace. The analysis involves estimating four regression models comprising of the wage model, the marginal return to schooling model, the marginal cost model and the optimal level of schooling model. The result demonstrates that workers' ability index does not affect wages significantly but it is a positive and significant determinant for years of schooling. The study shows that the optimal years of schooling for the Malaysian service sector is about 14 years or at diploma level. The actual data reveals that 28.2 percent of respondents have actual years of schooling lower than the optimal level, while about 46.5 percent of them having actual years of schooling higher than the optimal level. The implication from this study is that workers in the service sector, particularly who are with level of schooling lower than the optimal level must increase their educational level in order to achieve the optimal wage.
... 18). On the contrary, much literature makes connections between literacy, numeracy, and labor market outcomes (Vignoles et al., 2011;A'Hearn et al., 2009;Becker and Woessmann, 2009). ...
This paper examines the effects of HIV/AIDS mortality on saving and investment in Asia. Annual data for years 1990-2015 from 43 Asian countries. The empirical model also allows for potential gender differences in AIDS mortality to vary the effect on savings and investment. Our research shows that there are gender and wealth differences in how this disease affects the macro economy. An increase in the AIDS mortality rate of either gender reduces saving and investment in low-income countries. In regards to savings, an increase in male AIDS mortality is shown to increase savings. On the other hand, an increase in female AIDS mortality is expected to decrease savings. In terms of investment we find the opposite effects across genders: increasing male AIDS mortality causes decrease in investment (though not statistically significant) and increasing female AIDS mortality increases investment. For low-income countries, we find a negative relationship between AIDS mortality of either gender on saving or investment.
... While cognitive skills can be measured by objectives tests (IQ and other standardised achievement test scores), non-cognitive skills are much harder to measure and are usually analysed by means of self-reported information. For that reason, most studies have mainly focused on cognitive skills with the general finding that higher levels of these skills are associated with better labour market outcomes such as lower unemployment, higher wages, high-skilled jobs, and others (see, for example, Hansen, 2010;Vignoles et al., 2011;Cameron and Heckman, 1993;Zax and Rees, 2002;and Cawley et al., 2001). ...
While the effect of education and experience on labour market outcomes has been widely studied, the literature that analyses the influence of human capital competencies (talents, skills, and capabilities) is still relatively scarce. Using cross-sectional data from the REFLEX Project, we investigate the effect of personal competencies (both cognitive and non-cognitive) on two labour market outcomes among European university graduates: occupational status and earnings. Our estimates suggest that individuals endowed with a higher level of competencies are more likely to occupy managerial and professional positions and, to a lesser extent, technician jobs. Additionally, they also receive higher wages, but the relation is only significant for men. When we distinguish competencies according to their cognitive or non-cognitive nature, we find that only the latter are significant in explaining occupational status. In contrast, cognitive competencies are more related with wages. As regards the role of specific competencies, our findings suggest that leadership is the most relevant competence for the occupational status of males, especially in managerial positions. In contrast, initiative and enterprise abilities seem to be the most relevant skills for women in such positions. Intelligence produces the highest rewards in terms of earnings among the male subsample, while none of the competencies exerts a significant impact on females’ wages.
